Latest Interviews
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Clear all filters- Milken Institute58 min
Solving the Global Water Challenge
Diane Regas, Christine Cioffe, Monica Ellis, Robert MacLean, Seth Siegel, Gary White
A panel of experts from Water.org, PepsiCo, and California American Water analyzed the global water crisis, highlighting that 660 million people lack basic water access while developed nations face aging infrastructure and pollution. The discussion detailed how innovative financial models like Water Credit leverage private capital to serve low-income populations and how agricultural reforms in places like Israel offer scalable solutions for the 70% of water used globally for farming. Ultimately, participants argued that shifting focus from the cost to the value of water, combined with desalination and climate resilience strategies, is essential to bridge the gap between humanitarian aid and sustainable commercial finance.
- Milken Institute39 min
A Conversation with Jacob J. Lew, Secretary, U.S. Department of the Treasury
Treasury Secretary Jack Lew characterizes Puerto Rico's $70 billion debt crisis as an immediate emergency requiring legislative authority to establish an independent oversight board and prevent a chaotic restructuring that would harm 3.5 million residents and U.S. municipal bond markets. Simultaneously, Lew advocates for comprehensive federal reforms to overhaul the housing finance system, close corporate inversion loopholes, and implement a revenue-generating tax code that addresses broken incentives without relying on revenue neutrality. Complementing these economic measures, the administration announced a redesign of U.S. currency featuring Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill to better reflect American history, while urging bipartisan cooperation to overcome modern political divisiveness.
- Milken Institute1h 2m
The Speed of Money: What Faster Payments Mean for Banks, Consumers and the Economy
Jackson Mueller, Daniel Gonzalez, Jordan Lampe, Jane Larimer, Shivani Siroya, Dan Gonzalez
Amidst a highly fragmented U.S. payment landscape involving over 12,000 financial institutions, the Federal Reserve's Faster Payments Task Force is guiding an industry-led transition to enhance settlement speeds and data capacity. This initiative builds upon NACHA's mandatory Same-Day ACH rules while evaluating hybrid network models to meet the 75% of businesses expecting one-hour payment completion without relying on a single dominant rail. Driven by global precedents and technical standards like ISO 20022, the sector anticipates a robust, interoperable real-time ecosystem within three to five years that balances innovation with existing prudential regulations.
- Milken Institute1h 2m
Reforming Islam: A Conversation With Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Somali-Dutch activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali recounts her journey from a radicalized childhood in Somalia to her intellectual awakening in the Netherlands, where she developed a critical framework for analyzing Islamic doctrine following the September 11 attacks. She proposes a five-point reform agenda targeting the Quran's authority, the infallibility of the Prophet, Sharia law, and the concept of Jihad to reconcile Islam with modern humanism and Western liberal values. While condemning Donald Trump's appropriation of her message for anti-Muslim rhetoric, Ali advocates for distinguishing between critiquing religious ideologies and respecting individuals, urging continued support for the AHA Foundation to combat honor violence and religious tyranny.
- Milken Institute1h 4m
From Battlefield to Business: Translating Military Skills Into Civilian Success
Susan Fallon Brown, Greg Behrman, Brendan Hart, Christopher Perkins, Blas Villalobos, Chris Perkins, Connie Mielke, Ronald Funderburg, Yolanda Parker, Jim Coleman, Lieutenant Hawley
Hosted by Susan Fallon Brown of Monster and Military.com, this panel featured Chris Perkins of Citi, Brendan Hart of Prosper Labs, and Greg Berman of Nationswell to analyze the transition of 2.5 million veteran-owned businesses into the civilian labor market. The discussion highlighted how public-private partnerships have boosted veteran confidence and job readiness metrics while exposing critical gaps in skills translation and self-advocacy that employers can address through initiatives like Citi's hiring targets or Uber's data-driven recruitment. By addressing barriers such as the delayed timing of Transition Assistance Programs and the need for better support for disabled veterans, the event outlined a strategic shift toward corporate retention and tailored mentorship to leverage military leadership in diverse sectors.
- Milken Institute55 min
Private Equity Outlook from Industry Titans
Andrea Kramer, Leon Black, Jonathan Nelson, David Rubenstein, Robert Smith
At a recent industry summit, private equity leaders including Leon Black, Jonathan Nelson, and Robert Smith identified high recession risks, compressed leverage, and evolving LP demands as critical challenges reshaping the market. The discussion highlighted a strategic pivot from rapid acquisitions to operational value creation, with firms diversifying into credit products and leveraging sovereign wealth funds to navigate tightening spreads and regulatory barriers. Furthermore, experts projected extended holding periods and a potential expansion of access to non-accredited investors while maintaining skepticism regarding emerging market returns due to currency and governance uncertainties.
- Milken Institute1h 7m
Gender Gap: Checking the Box or Moving the Needle?
Richard Ditizio, Christopher Ailman, Alexandra Cavoulacos, Lauren Leader-Chivée, Rosie Rios, Janet Thomas, Candida Wolff
Panelists and officials highlighted the persistent economic and social costs of gender inequality, citing data that gender-balanced leadership correlates with lower risk, higher performance, and significant GDP growth. While private sector initiatives like CalSTRS and Citi have successfully implemented accountability measures and diverse hiring practices, government agencies continue to lag due to fragmented policies and a lack of internal mentoring structures. The consensus among speakers is that advancing women in leadership requires men to act as active sponsors and companies to enforce measurable diversity targets rather than relying on vague aspirations.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Connectivity Is the New World Order: A Conversation with Parag Khanna
Senior fellow Parag Khanna argues that massive global infrastructure investment has replaced geography as the primary driver of destiny, creating a "Connectography" where traditional borders and territorial conquest are increasingly obsolete. His analysis highlights a shift toward competitive connectivity, where nations like China and the United States compete for control over trade enclaves, digital networks, and energy grids rather than physical land. Khenna contends that future geopolitical stability depends on adopting long-term infrastructure diplomacy and economic integration strategies to manage accelerating migration and the complex web of megaprojects reshaping the world.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Closing the Clean Energy Investment Gap
Greg Dalton, Andrew Chung, Lynn Jurich, Andy Karsner, John Woolard
A diverse panel of industry leaders and policymakers converges to address a projected $30 to $44 trillion global investment gap in energy infrastructure while debating the optimal balance between distributed solar, centralized grids, and nuclear power. Key figures including John Woolard, Lynn Jurich, and Andrew Chung identify inconsistent regulatory frameworks and the "bait-and-switch" tactics of Public Utility Commissions as primary deterrents to private capital, urging the adoption of standardized green bond definitions and new financial vehicles to mobilize sovereign wealth funds. The discussion concludes with a consensus that scaling existing technologies through hybrid grid models and leveraging international capital markets is more immediately critical than relying solely on early-stage "moonshot" research to achieve decarbonization targets.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
New Wave Giving: How the Next Generation of Philanthropists Is Rethinking the Model
Melissa Stevens, Matt Dalio, Leili Gerami, Justin Rockefeller, Cameron Saul, Darius Baxter
Driven by an estimated $27 trillion wealth transfer and complex global challenges, modern philanthropy is shifting from traditional grant-making toward scalable hybrid models that integrate for-profit mechanisms with social impact goals. Key figures like Matt Dalio, Cameron Saul, and Lely Jarami exemplify this evolution by leveraging supply chains, consumerism, and media platforms to address poverty and access issues while the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and new family office networks prioritize data-driven metrics over anecdotal evidence. This movement emphasizes intergenerational legacy and cross-border collaboration, positioning moral investment and early entrepreneurial engagement as central strategies for solving intractable problems through market-based solutions.
- Milken Institute1h 15m
Real Estate: Where Are Prospects Rising and Falling?
Maria Bartiromo, Barry Blattman, Victor Coleman, David Simon, Michael Weil
Industry leaders characterize the current real estate cycle as stable and leveraged-conservative, driven by a strategic pivot from short-term trading to long-term ownership as Asian and Middle Eastern capital flows increasingly favor equity stakes in U.S. trophy assets. While new supply creates localized oversupply risks in urban cores like New York and San Francisco, the market demonstrates resilience through disciplined underwriting and a distinct shift where technology giants and international investors prioritize physical space as a critical talent acquisition tool rather than operational overhead. Looking ahead, participants warn that future value creation will rely on operational efficiency and asset management to navigate political uncertainties and a transition away from interest-rate arbitrage, even as emerging markets like Brazil offer deep value opportunities for diversification.
- Milken Institute54 min
End of an Era: A Conversation With NBA Great Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant concludes his twenty-year NBA career by prioritizing personal fulfillment over team contention, a decision marked by a final 60-point performance that he dismissed as irrelevant to his internal motivation to transition into storytelling and media ventures through "Kobe Inc." Reflecting on a leadership style defined by brutal honesty and a focus on unlocking teammates' potential, Bryant details his evolution from a self-centered competitor to a mentor who utilized his relationship with Michael Jordan and his friction with Shaquille O'Neal as catalysts for greatness. His post-retirement philosophy emphasizes controlling effort rather than doubting outcomes, setting a precedent for his future endeavors that value historical legacy and personal growth over external validation.
- Milken Institute57 min
Building a Culture of Innovation
Willow Bay, Robert Kegan, Scott Neal, Susan Santiago
Research on Decurion, NextJump, and Bridgewater identifies Deliberate Developmental Organizations as entities that hardwire personal growth into daily work to achieve high performance, a model exemplified by Gulfstream's cross-industry technology transfers and Hyatt's global "Design Thinking" initiatives. These companies replace traditional performance metrics with "practice" cultures that view failure as a learning resource, utilizing empathetic hiring processes to prioritize emotional intelligence and humility over technical perfection alone. By balancing high challenge with high support, these organizations successfully dismantle fixed mindsets, enabling continuous innovation while addressing critical diversity goals such as Hyatt's "Women at Hyatt" initiative to correct C-suite gender disparities.
- Milken Institute54 min
The Evolution of Hedge Funds and the Future of Asset Management
Ilana D. Weinstein, Cliff Asness, Neil Chriss, Steven Cohen
Prominent hedge fund managers Neil Chris, Cliff Asness, and Steve Cohen address the industry's struggle with mediocre performance, excessive fee compression, and a severe shortage of elite talent that limits asset growth. They analyze how rising regulatory barriers and the commoditization of alternative data force a shift toward hybrid human-AI strategies while driving consolidation and the search for alpha in European and Asian markets. The panelists conclude that future success depends on delivering true uncorrelated returns, adapting to political volatility, and restructuring fee models to align with investor scrutiny of infrastructure costs.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
How Activist Investing Is Reshaping the Boardroom: A New Dawn for Corporate Governance?
David Faber, Gene Lee, Raymond J. McGuire, Clifton Robbins, Anne Sheehan, Jeffrey Smith
CalSTRS leverages its $189 billion portfolio to co-invest with specialized activist managers like Starboard Value and Blue Harbor, prioritizing deep due diligence and long-term governance engagement over distinct asset classification. The discussion highlights the Darden Restaurants case study as a paradigm for successful collaborative intervention, where board turnover and a jointly developed five-year plan drove superior cash-flow outcomes while avoiding costly proxy fights. As institutional investors increasingly demand internal self-introspection and director equity alignment, the event projects a future where activism remains a permanent governance feature driven by mid-cap opportunities and shareholder pressure on capital allocation.